A former Synovus banker will spend two years in federal prison after defrauding the Columbus-based financial institution out of more than $1 million.
John D. Evans, 48, was sentenced Wednesday after admitting stealing money from the bank and evading taxes on those illegal earnings, prosecutors said.
Evans pleaded guilty in November to four counts of bank fraud and four counts of tax evasion after it was discovered he stole $1,046,602 of the bank’s money between July 2013 and May 2017.
Authorities said Evans managed some of the bank’s largest clients, but diverted the funds into a personal account he opened at another bank. He then used the money to make payments on vehicles, credit card bills, vacations and jewelry, prosecutors said.
“This defendant will pay a high price for breaching the trust of his clients and his employer,” U.S. Attorney Charlie Peeler said in a statement. “Fraud and tax evasion are serious crimes that carry serious punishment.”
A spokesman for the bank said no Synovus customers lost money in the scheme.
In addition to serving 24 months behind bars, Evans was ordered to pay more than $166,000 in restitution to Synovus and another $221,000 to the IRS, authorities said. Once he is released from prison, he must also spend three years on supervised release.
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